Today in the world there are not so many major military conflicts that de facto have not been completed, remaining in the "cold" phase. The exception to the category of exceptions is perhaps the military confrontation between the USSR and Japan, a peace treaty on which has not yet been signed, as well as the Korean conflict. Yes, in 1953, both sides signed a “truce,” but both Koreans treat him with slight neglect. In fact, these two countries are still at war.
It is believed that the intervention of the USSR and the USA served as the main cause of the war, but this was somewhat not the case, because the internal situation on the peninsula by that time was very unstable. The fact is that the artificial distinction, which was made shortly before, actually cut the country in half, and everything was even worse than in the situation with West and East Germany.
What were the two Koreas before the start of the conflict?
Many still believe that the northerners suddenly and unmotivated attacked the southerners, although this is far from the case. In South Korea, President Lee Sung Man ruled at that time. He lived in the USA for a long time, spoke excellent English, although Korean was difficult for him, but, oddly enough, he was not at all a protege of the Americans and even openly despised the White House. There was every reason for this: Lee Son seriously considered himself the "messiah" of the entire Korean people, irresistibly eager for battle and constantly asked for the supply of offensive weapons. The Americans were in no hurry to help him, because they were not too keen to get into a hopeless Korean conflict, which at that time did not give them anything useful.
“Messiah” also did not use the support of the people. Left parties in the government were very strong. So, in 1948 a whole army regiment revolted, and Jeju Island for a long time "preached" communist beliefs. It was expensive for its residents: as a result of the suppression of the uprising, almost one in four died. Oddly enough, but all this happened almost without the knowledge of Moscow or Washington, although they clearly believed that the “damned commies” or “imperialists” were to blame. In fact, everything that happened was an internal affair of the Koreans themselves.
Degradation
Throughout 1949, the situation on the borders of the two Koreas strongly resembled the fronts of the First World War, as cases of provocation and open hostilities took place daily. Contrary to the prevailing opinions of “specialists”, southerners most often acted as an aggressor. And therefore, even Western historians admit that on June 25, 1950, the Korean conflict expectedly entered a hot phase.
A few words should also be said about the leadership of the North. We all remember the “great helmsman,” that is, Kim Il Sung. But only in the times described by us, his role was not so great. In general, the situation resembled the USSR of the 1920s: Lenin was then a significant figure, but Bukharin, Trotsky and other figures also had tremendous weight in the political arena. The comparison, of course, is a crude, but it gives a general understanding of what is happening in North Korea. So, the history of the Korean conflict ... Why did the Union decide to take an active part in it?
Why did the USSR intervene in the conflict?
On the part of the Communists of the North, the duties of the “messiah” were performed by Pak Hong Young, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and, in fact, the second person in the country and the Communist Party. She, by the way, was formed immediately after liberation from the Japanese occupation, and the legendary Kim Il Sung still lived in the USSR then. However, in the 30s, Pak himself also managed to live in the Union and, moreover, made influential friends there. This fact served as the main reason for the involvement of our country in the war.
Pak swore an oath to the leadership of the USSR that in the event of an attack of at least 200 thousand "South Korean Communists" would immediately go on a decisive attack ... and the criminal puppet regime would immediately fall. It is important to understand that the Soviet Union did not have any active residency in those parts, and therefore all decisions were made based on the words and opinions of Pak. This is one of the most important reasons why the history of the Korean conflict is inextricably linked with the history of our country.
For a long time, Washington, Beijing and Moscow preferred not to interfere directly with what was happening, although comrade Kim Il Sung literally bombarded Beijing and Moscow with requests to help him with a campaign in Seoul. It should be noted that on September 24, 1949, the Ministry of Defense assessed the proposed plan as "unsatisfactory", in which the Plenum of the
Central Committee of the CPSU fully supported the military
. The document stated openly that "it is clearly not worth counting on a quick victory, and even breaking the enemy’s resistance will not be able to prevent massive economic and political problems." China responded even sharper and more specifically. But in 1950, the required permission was received by Pak. So the Korean conflict began ...
What made Moscow change its mind?
It may well be that the emergence of the PRC as a new, independent state was somehow influenced by a positive decision. The Chinese could help the Korean neighbors, but they had their own problems, the civil war had just ended in the country. So in this situation it was easier to convince the USSR that the “blitzkrieg” would succeed completely.
It is now everyone knows that the United States in many ways also provoked the Korean conflict. We also understand the reasons for this, but in those days all this was far from obvious. All Koreans knew that Americans strongly disliked Lee Son Man. He was well acquainted with some Republicans in Parliament, but the Democrats, who were already playing the "first violin", openly called Lee Son the "old senile."
In a word, this man was for Americans a sort of “suitcase without a handle”, which is terribly inconvenient to drag, but you should not even throw it away. The defeat of the Kuomintang in China also played a role: the United States did practically nothing to openly support the Taiwanese radicals, and yet they were much more needed than some kind of "insanity." So the conclusion was simple: they will not intervene in the Korean conflict. They had no reasons for active participation in it (hypothetically).
In addition, Korea was officially removed from the list of countries that the Americans pledged to defend in the event of unexpected aggression by third parties. Finally, on the world map of those times there were enough points at which the commies could strike. West Berlin, Greece, Turkey and Iran - according to the CIA, all these places could provoke much more dangerous consequences for the US geopolitical interests.
What made Washington intervene
Unfortunately, Soviet analysts were seriously mistaken in not thinking at what time the Korean conflict occurred. Truman was the president, and he took the “communist threat” very seriously, and he perceived any successes of the USSR as his personal insult. He believed in the doctrine of deterrence, and also didn’t put a weak and puppet UN in a penny. In addition, the mood in the United States was similar: politicians should be tough so as not to be branded as messes and not lose the support of the electorate.
One can speculate for a long time about whether the USSR would support the northerners if he knew about the real lack of support from the "southern communists", as well as about direct American intervention. In principle, everything could happen in exactly the same way, but on the contrary: Lee Seung Man could “finish off” the CIA, the Yankees would send their advisers and troops, as a result of which the Union would be forced to intervene ... But history does not suffer a subjunctive mood. What happened is what happened.
So, how did the Korean conflict arise (1950-1953)? The reasons are simple: there are two Koreas, North and South. Each is ruled by a person who considers it his duty to reunite the country. Each has its own “patrons”: the USSR and the USA, which, for one reason or another, do not want to intervene. China would be glad to intervene to expand its possessions, but there are still no forces, and the army does not have normal combat experience. This is the essence of the Korean conflict ... The rulers of Korea are doing everything possible to get help. They get it, as a result of which the war begins. All pursue their own interests.
How it all began?
What year did the Korean conflict happen? On June 25, 1950, Juche troops crossed the border and entered the battle on the move. Resistance through and through the corrupt and weak army of the southerners they practically did not notice. Three days later Seoul was taken, and at that moment when the northerners marched along its streets, the victorious broadcasts of the South were broadcast on the radio: the commies were running, the armies were moving to Pyongyang.
After the capture of the capital, the northerners began to wait for the uprising promised by Pak. It’s just that he wasn’t, and therefore he had to fight seriously, with the UN forces, the Americans and their allies. The manual UN quickly ratified the document “On cleaning up and expelling the aggressor”, and General D. MacArthur was appointed commander. The USSR representative at that time boycotted UN meetings because of the presence of the Taiwan delegation there, so everything was calculated correctly: no one could veto. This is how the internal civil conflict escalated into international (which to this day occurs regularly).
As for Pak, who brewed this mess, after the failed "uprising" he and his faction lost all influence, and then they simply eliminated it. Formally, the verdict provided for the execution for “espionage in favor of the United States,” but in fact he simply framed Kim Il Sung and the leadership of the USSR, drawing them into an unnecessary war. The Korean conflict, the date of which is now known throughout the world, is another reminder that interference in the internal affairs of sovereign states is completely unacceptable, especially if the interests of third parties are being pursued.
Success and failure
The defense of the Busan perimeter is well-known: the Americans and Southerners retreated under the attacks of Pyongyang and fortified themselves on well-equipped borders. The training of the northerners was excellent, the Americans, who perfectly remembered the capabilities of the T-34s with which they were armed, were not eager to fight them, leaving their positions as soon as possible.
But General Walker with the help of tough measures (he ran through the trenches, showing the combat use of the "bazooka") managed to rectify the situation, and the northerners were simply not ready for a long war. The grand front line devoured all the resources, the tanks were running out, and serious problems began with the supply of troops. In addition, it is worth paying tribute to the American pilots: they had excellent cars, so there was no question of air supremacy.
Finally, not the most outstanding, but rather experienced strategist, General D. MacArthur managed to develop a landing plan in Incheon. This is the western tip of the Korean Peninsula. In principle, the idea was extremely extravagant, but MacArthur, due to his charisma, nevertheless insisted on fulfilling his plan. He had that very “flair”, which sometimes worked.
On September 15, the Americans managed to land and, after fierce fighting, were able to recapture Seoul in two weeks. This marked the beginning of the second phase of the war. By early October, the northerners completely left the territory of the southerners. They decided not to miss their chance: by October 15, they had already captured half of the enemy’s territory, whose armies were simply exhausted.
The Chinese come into play
But then China’s patience burst : the Americans and their “wards” crossed the 38th parallel, and this was a direct threat to Chinese sovereignty. To give direct access to your US borders? It was impossible to imagine. The Chinese "small detachments" of General Peng Dehuai entered the fray.
They repeatedly warned of the possibility of their participation, but MacArthur did not react in any way to the notes of protest. By that time, he openly ignored the orders of the leadership, since he imagined himself to be a kind of “specific prince”. So, Taiwan was forced to accept him according to the protocol of meetings of the heads of state. Finally, he repeatedly stated that he would arrange a “great slaughter” for the Chinese if they “dare to intervene”. They simply could not let such insults go to China. So when did the Korean conflict happen with the Chinese?
On October 19, 1950, "volunteer units" entered Korea. Since MacArthur did not expect anything like this at all, by October 25 they completely liberated the territory of the northerners and dared the resistance of the UN troops and the Americans. Thus began the third phase of hostilities. On some sections of the front, UN troops simply fled, and somewhere to the end they defended their positions, systematically retreating. On January 4, 1951, Seoul was again occupied. The Korean conflict of 1950-1953 continued to gain momentum.
Success and failure
By the end of the same month, the offensive was again stalled. By that time, General Walker had died, he was replaced by M. Ridgway. He began to use the strategy of "meat grinder": the Americans began to gain a foothold on the dominant heights and simply waited for the Chinese to occupy all other locations. When this happened, the MLRS and aircraft were launched, burning out the positions occupied by the northerners.
A series of major successes allowed the Americans to launch a counterattack and repel Seoul for the second time. By April 11, D. MacArthur was removed from the post of commander in chief due to the obsession with nuclear bombing. He was replaced by the aforementioned M. Ridgway. However, by that time the "fuse" had ended with the UN forces: they did not repeat the march to Pyongyang, and the northerners had already managed to arrange arms supplies and stabilized the front line. The war acquired a positional character. But the Korean conflict of 1950-1953. went on.
The end of hostilities
It became clear to everyone that there was simply no other way to resolve the conflict, besides a peace treaty. On June 23, the USSR called for a ceasefire at a UN meeting. On November 27, 1951, they had already agreed on the establishment of a demarcation line and the exchange of prisoners, but Lee Son Man again intervened, who ardently stood up for the continuation of the war.
He actively used the differences arising in the exchange of prisoners. Under ordinary conditions, they change according to the principle of "all for all." But here difficulties arose: the fact is that all parties to the conflict (North, South and China) actively used violent recruitment, and the soldiers simply did not want to fight. At least half of all prisoners simply refused to return to the “place of registration”.
Son Man almost disrupted the negotiation process, simply ordering the release of all the "refuseniks." In general, by that time he was so tired of the Americans that the CIA even started planning an operation to remove him from power. In general, the Korean conflict (1950-1953), in short, is an ideal example of how the government sabotages peace negotiations in its own interests.
On July 27, 1953, representatives of the DPRK, AKND and UN troops (representatives of South Korea refused to sign the document) signed a ceasefire agreement according to which the demarcation line between North and South Korea was established at approximately the 38th parallel, and on both sides around it formed a demilitarized zone 4 km wide. This is how the Korean conflict occurred (1950-1953), a summary of which you saw on the pages of this article.
The result of the war - more than 80% of the total housing stock on the Korean Peninsula is destroyed, more than 70% of all industries are disabled. Nothing is still known about real losses, since each side greatly overestimates the number of dead opponents and minimizes its losses. Despite this, it is clear that the conflict in Korea is one of the bloodiest wars in recent history. All sides of the confrontation agree that this should not be repeated.